Occupy Union Busters: Solidarity W/ Presby's Inspired Life Nursing Home Workers

Attention union busting companies everywhere you are on notice: Occupy Philly is watching you!

On Decmber 9th Occupy Philadelphia took action against Presby's Inspired Life, a local nursing home chain! ALL companies that make millions in profit from our health care and exploit their employees deserve to be confronted. All companies that treat our well-being as a commodity deserve the People's Mic up in their grills. Presby's Inspired Life is a local nursing home chain that refuses to allow its hard-working nursing home employees to bargain a fair contract and is trying to destroy their union. Although employees voted by a wide majority in April, 2010 to join SEIU, they have been without a contract since, and leaders in union organizing have been fired or pressured to leave. Presby's Inspired Life has retained the law firm of Saul, Ewing, a notorious union-busting firm, to negotiate with workers.

The employees of Presby's Inspired Life include many immigrants from the Caribbean islands and West Africa. Many work multiple jobs just to get by, leaving them tired and exhausted and unable to care for nursing home residents with their full energies. Because of a tense, antagonistic relationship with nursing home management and an intimidating work environment, these nurses and aids are distracted from focusing on delivering the best care to their elderly and infirm charges.


Although Presby's Inspired Life is incorporated as a non-profit, it had revenues of $4.1 million in 2010 ($1.3 million for just this one home) and paid its President and CEO, Judee M. Bavaria, over $400,000 in total compensation in 2009, even as the global recession battered businesses. It recently received an $8.5 million HUD grant but refuses to use our taxpayer money to pay its workers fairly.


Presby's board includes members of the Presbyterian Church and is headed by the Rev. Paul S. Stavrakos, but it hasn't acted very Christian towards its fellow men and women.


Occupy Philadelphia calls on Presby's Inspired Life to bargain a fair contract that would raise standards for patient care and respect the worker's union and seniority. Let these hard-working people get back to helping our parents and grandparents with the most of their energies.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Occupy Philadelphia
• Occupy Union Busters
• Protest
• People's Mic
• Philly
• Occupy Wall Street
• Mic Check
• Mic Checked
• Nursing Home Workers

[pnsayko1]

@psharphr, are you calling the workers who care for their residents every need with love and compassion liars? they have been fighting for justice for their resident and their own families and have been met with nothing but intimidation and harassment.

[psharphr]

Occupy Philly just lost my support and that of hundreds of others after this completely ignorant protest. You people need to get your facts straight before attacking. I am familiar with Presbys Inspired Life and the long term care industry and what you did was reprehensible.

1. Presbys is a non-profit organization that primarily provides affordable housing to the elderly. They are not a large "nursing home" organization as you claim.

2. Presbys employees have a rich benefit package

[sozfan1]

she makes almost as much the president of the united states. does she really think she has as much responsibility? more likely she's a criminal scumbag pig!!

[bodinian]

Hey, guys. Remember me? I am the guy that was wearing the Victorian era clothing as I marched with you and visited the camp on Dilworth plaza. I was hoping my outfit would make me stand out enough to be memorable to those I stood with. How are things progressing after the swine evicted the camp? I haven't been able to catch up with you after you left Dilworth =*